Trapped in the Idol Universe

└ LOL

└ What are you on about, he’s mine 😭

The Namchin-nam heating up SNS was none other than Hojin himself.

Wearing an item that boosted his Charm by 110, his already stellar face was rocking countless hearts.

Of course, he was completely oblivious to the situation. No doubt he didn’t notice the swarm trailing behind him.

Thanks to this, Hojin’s art academy suddenly saw a flood of walk-in inquiries.

How bad was it? A queue starting on the 4th floor snaked down the stairs all the way outside the building.

“Hey, you...?”

Deok-seon stared at her friend—looking strangely different today—and couldn’t find words.

She’d never thought of Hojin as a guy before; it felt oddly unfamiliar.

He wasn’t even wearing his usual brimmed cap, and his different vibe kept drawing {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} glances.

She wasn’t the only one noticing.

Classmates in their art session kept stealing looks at Hojin instead of focusing on their drawings.

Only Hojin himself remained fully absorbed in sketching.

Unable to hold back any longer, Deok-seon at last spoke up.

“Hojin.”

“Hmm?”

“What’s with that shirt?”

“Ah... sorry.”

Deok-seon bristled at Hojin apologizing before even answering. She must have said “stop saying sorry” a hundred times; this apology-bot clearly had no intention of fixing itself.

She decided to find out why he was apologizing this time.

“Why?”

“’Cause of my shirt or something?”

“That’s part of it—”

“But don’t worry, it doesn’t mean I’m your boyfriend. That’ll never happen.”

Shit. That made it worse.

Was this the infamous zero-confession, round one?

Deok-seon pushed her tongue against her cheeks in annoyance.

“Listen, I have zero intention of being your girlfriend, not in a million years.”

“Um... I know. Your standards are high, Deok-seon.”

“Right. You’d have to be at least level-one-second-cat to even show me your business card. Got it?”

“One-second-cat...?”

That was the nickname netizens gave Roi after Star Hero aired.

Hojin’s eyes widened in surprise—he hadn’t expected Deok-seon to mention Roi.

“How do you know that?”

“What do you mean?”

“Our Roi, I mean, One-Second-Cat. You watched Star Hero too?”

“Of course I did.”

Deok-seon tapped her phone to show her lock screen.

“Look at this. That side profile is killer, right? More than half of my Kakao profile pics are of One-Second-Cat.” frёeωebɳovel.com

Thanks to someone close to One-Second-Cat leaking additional photos, his popularity skyrocketed even higher.

“But all the new pics are side profiles too, so there are tons of rumors.”

“What rumors?”

“Things like ‘his front looks busted,’ or ‘his brows are too far apart.’ But I don’t care.”

Deok-seon didn’t realize the leaker’s nickname was “Kim Hojin.”

Meanwhile Hojin felt uneasy.

He regretted whether posting those photos had been a mistake, since rumors were swirling.

As Hojin hesitated, classmates who saw Deok-seon’s phone gathered around.

“Kyaa! I saw him too. He was in the trailer, right? He’s so pretty in person.”

“I’m Park Yeonwoo. His face was insane.”

“Tsk tsk. You two are too young to know. Real men are always older. I’m CoffeeKing.”

“What are you on? Look at our cat’s face—if that’s not S-rank, no one in this country is S-rank, guys.”

By the time he snapped back to reality, Hojin had been squeezed out of his seat.

Standing awkwardly as he overheard them, he decided to get a water jug and refill his bottle.

✧

At that same time, the Star Hero Bermuda Trio arrived in Hongdae.

After parking in an alley, the three walked toward Hojin’s art academy.

But in front of the building—normally quiet to the point of dreary—today chaos reigned.

“Huh?”

Taeeon stopped, checking his map app.

This was the right place...?

A long line stretched outside the entrance like a train.

“What’s this? What are they lined up for?”

“No idea. There’s a burger place on the 2nd floor... maybe that line?”

“Could be. If so, it’s got nothing to do with us. Let’s go in.”

Yeonwoo led the way, followed by Roi.

Taeeon wanted to ask what the line was for, but his siblings marched ahead and he missed his chance.

“Come on, you two.”

Inside, the sight was even more astonishing.

The long queue snaked from the 2nd-floor stairs up to the 3rd floor—and every person in line was female.

“Eek...! What on earth? I thought it was a burger line?”

Several people turned at Yeonwoo’s thick dialect and spotted Yeonwoo and Roi.

One student enthusiastically tapped her friend’s shoulder, whispering. ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom

“Look, behind you!”

They might not have known who these three were without watching the broadcast, but they recognized three stunning faces comparable to Namchin-nam himself.

Yet without stopping to admire them, the trio boarded the elevator.

The directory showed art academy classrooms on floors 4–6.

Not knowing exactly which room, Taeeon pressed 4.

To his surprise, when the elevator doors opened he was met by another endless queue.

Worse, someone recognized them—triggering utter panic.

“Kim Taeeon...?”

“Whoa. Park Yeonwoo.”

As two murmured, the hallway erupted.

Taeeon, unused to strangers recognizing him, looked around nervously.

Yeonwoo was just as hesitant, eyes darting but feet glued.

Then Roi, hidden in the corner of the elevator, stepped forward between them.

“Excuse us, please.”

Though the line might be shocked, a former idol knew this was nothing.

Best to show no sign of surprise—and above all, to act brazenly.

But the second Roi moved ahead, silence fell.

“...?”

What the sudden vibe kill?

Roi scowled—this reception was way different from when his hyungs showed up.

All the more reason to push forward without restraint.

“Sorry. Please let us through.”

He parted the crowd swiftly, knowing any hesitation would let them mob him.

Several people were already filming on their phones.

They must’ve aired the first broadcast by now.

An unexpected variable.

Yet how had the edit been done so that not a single person recognized him?

Did they excise me entirely?

A flicker of anxiety.

Turning back, he saw Taeeon and Yeonwoo still stuck by the elevator.

Why were they standing like that?

“Guys.”

At Roi’s call, their eyes widened.

“Hurry up.”

His slightly sulky tone prompted them to exchange glances.

“If you don’t move, I’ll go alone.”

“I’m com, I’m comin’! My stuff’s goin’ too.”

“Okay... we’re coming!”

At Roi’s urging, Taeeon and Yeonwoo scrambled forward—shutter clicks ringing all around.

Roi strode straight to the front desk.

The line outside snaked all the way here.

What on earth warranted so many people?

He figured there must be some legendary star instructor here.

“Hello. Could you tell me which classroom Kim Hojin is in? Something urgent came up at home and I can’t reach him.”

“Hojin? He should be in Classroom 2 on the 6th floor...”

“Thank you.”

As Roi bowed, Taeeon and Yeonwoo did likewise like bodyguards.

Spotting Roi’s uneasy expression, Yeonwoo asked quietly.

“Hey, you okay? You look upset.”

“No? I’m fine.”

“You sure? Want to look in a mirror? Your face looks like it’s gonna explode.”

“No, I said I’m fine.”

Actually, he was miffed.

Unless Junseo had cut him entirely from the edit, people should’ve noticed him.

This impostor. I worked so hard.

A wave of unease.

He vowed that once Hojin’s issue was settled, he’d review Episode 1 and call Junseo immediately.

They reached the 6th floor.

The door to Classroom 2—the one Hojin was supposed to be in—stood open.

Inside, a group of students clustered together while the rest diligently sketched at their easels.

“Hello.”

But the moment Roi entered and greeted them, silence struck again.

Another sudden vibe kill, making Roi’s cheeks flush.

Still, he kept his chin high—embarrassment called for boldness.

“Is Hojin...?”

Just then, a light, hard object dropped behind him, and water splashed.

Plop—

Clatter.

A four-section yellow water jug rolled to Roi’s feet.

Turning around, he saw a flustered Hojin standing there.

“R-Roi?”

“Hyung.”

...But what was he wearing?

Roi blinked in disbelief several times.

Your Boyfriend’s Walking By

Seven intense words stealing the Bermuda Trio’s gaze.

“Ah-hak-hak-hak!”

Yeonwoo’s shrill laughter echoed; even Taeeon bowed his head, trembling as he struggled to stifle his own laughter.

“Hyung, with me—”

Before Roi could finish, Hojin spun on his heel and bolted.

“Hyung!”

Not knowing why he was running, Roi sprinted after him.

Closing the gap instantly, Roi grabbed Hojin’s wrist.

“Talk to me.”

“I have nothing to say.”

“Then tell me why. What did I do wrong? I can’t fix it if you don’t tell me.”

At Roi’s angry tone, Hojin’s eyes welled with tears.